Bottle 1,173 of 3,000. The beer pours black with a brown head. The aroma is great and very complex. I get notes of dark fruit, alcohol, vanilla, chocolate and some light whiskey notes. The flavor is brown sugar, caramel, toffee, vanilla, chocolate and coffee. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. This is an excellent beer. (367 characters)

Review from notes. Thanks to ShanePB for bringing this down to share with me. 2009 Vintage.

A: Poured a dark brown/black with a slight reddish tint when held up to the light. A small tan head formed on top with little retention and spotty lacing.

S: Lots of cherry and oak, the oak intensifies as the beer warms. There is a hint of cocoa and vanilla. The strongest aroma reminds me of sherry/port though, I could smell it immediately.

T: Heavy dark fruit flavors with cherry, plum, and some dates. There is a mixture of oak and vanilla, the sherry/port flavors are present. This beer, more than any other I can remember, reminds me of wine. As the beer opens up there is a slight tartness on the finish.

M: Medium to full bodied with a nice level of carbonation for a bottle form 2009.

O: A bit of a let down based on the hype. Its good, but the fruit flavor and wine like qualities aren't typically what I am looking for in the style. Would love to try it again to see if there was just something a little off about this bottle. (1,039 characters)

'10 bottle #3207/3800 poured into a snifter. The brew appears dark brown to black with a solid finger and a half of dark tan froth. The cap slowly recedes leaving fingers and string-like patches of lacing on the glass. Constantly rising bubbles support the cap. A light swirl revives a finger of froth back to the surface. Very visually appearing brew with some solid head retention for a brew of 10% strength. When held to the light, some brown clarity is seen around the edges.

The initial smell of this brew is pungent with dark fruits. Raisiny alcohol is the first thing I think of with more sniffs bringing out some notes of chocolate and tobacco. Oak is present along with a whiskey accent that really plays off of the fruity alcohol notes in the nose. Towards the back are some mellow vanilla scents that really draw you back into this. This is a fine smelling brew right here.

The taste has just as much dark fruited alcohol character as you would expect based off of the aroma. Raisins, dates, plums, prunes.. it all is here initially. As more sips are taking, a bit more focus draws away from the fruity alcohol and back to the dark roast of the grain. A flavor of semi-sweet chocolate mixes with some notes of coffee, oak, whiskey tobacco, earth and roasted grain. The aftertaste is lightly nutty that draws back into the flavoring of chocolate and whiskey infused dark fruits.

This is a medium to full bodied brew that really boasts a lively level of carbonation. It flirts with having just a bit too much fizz in the mouth. If you try to swirl it around, it quickly turns to nothing but froth in the mouth. Luckily, I would rather have it over-carbed than under since some swirling can help ease the bubbles out of solution. Regardless, this was a solid brew. It is something I would certainly enjoy again. Really no complaints here other than it really focuses a lot on the dark fruity aspects which I think for my taste was a bit much. The alcohol is masterfully integrated for 10%. It is there totally in flavor but does not carry with it the expected burn. Really well done offering. (2,103 characters)

After Matt aka mdaschaf, my girlfriend and I opened up the Menagerie No. 5, we moved onto my bottle of Ivan. 750 ml corked and caged green bottle, poured into tulip glasses.

Vintage 2009.

A: Deep brown edging to a full black body with some amber hues around the top edges in the light. Atop is a light beige head, along with sporadic lacing and a thin retention ring. Not a bad looking beer though I did expect a darker head.

T: Oak dominates up front and even more so as this beer warms. Faint dark baker's chocolate, black cherry and some sweet sugary dates are mid-palate. The finish is quite tart that opens up the longer this sits. The fruity, tartness in the finish wasn't necessarily unpleasant but something unexpected.

M: Well carbonated for being a vintage 2009, maybe a bit too much for the style. Fairly smooth, not as creamy as I wanted and a touch dry in the linger.

In comparison to other Russian Imperial Stouts, this is definitely a good one but it doesn't match up to other breweries. The beer itself had a weird combination of roast, wood and fruit that I think perhaps was unintentional but it definitely came through big. (1,376 characters)

Bottle shared by mdfb79. Thanks Dan! I've wanted to try this beer for a long time.

2009 VintageBottle 2223 of 3000.

A: Ivan the Terrible has an opaque black body. When held to the light, the beer is dark brown at the apex. There is about an inch of tan head that leaves a fair amount of lacing on the glass.

S: This aroma is world class. Roasted malt and bourbon, hints of chocolate and coffee. Incredibly inviting.

T: Though not as amazing as the aroma, this beer is a pleasure to drink. It's extremely well-balanced, and the flavor is outstanding. The bourbon component is very present, but doesn't overpower the roasted malt or any of the other more subtle flavors.

M: Nice, thick feel. The 10% is not entirely disguised per se, but I certainly would not describe the beer as hot.

D: A pleasure to drink. I'm thankful for the opportunity to try it for the first time. I hope to have it again. (902 characters)

2008 bottle Vintage, #527/1152; Sampled January 2012A steady pour produces an almost two-finger thick, light brown colored head. The beer is fairly black smelling and it is clear if you look through a thin sliver of it, but is opaque otherwise. The beer smells vaguely of toasted coconuts at first, but this gets quite a bit more pronounced in short order. Notes of Bourbon, touches of alcohol, lots of vanillin and a backdrop of toasted, brown malt, a touch of roasted malt (though not quite as much as I might have expected), lots of brown bread toasted grain character,

Light sweet malt up front, gets sweeter as it rolls across the palate, the beer dries out in the finish with a slightly bitter, burnt, roast-grain character, and some warming, not quite hot alcohol and Bourbon. The roast character is quite prominent here with notes of dark chocolate, sweet coffee liquor, chalky roasted notes, and some bitter burnt character that isn’t really overly sharp. There is a touch too much heat and spicy alcohol in the finish; spicy oak notes also accentuate this, but also provide a touch of astringency. The body, while having a certain heft and viscosity, is a touch on the light side for a rich Imperial stout.

The body of this beer is actually a touch lighter than I would have liked; more malt richness would have supported the Bourbon Barrel notes better (despite the Bourbon character really not being over the top in this beer). Not bad, but I wish it was a touch richer and maltier. (1,500 characters)

2008 vintage bottle #636 out of 1152. Poured from a 750ml bottle into a tasting glass. It poured a dark brown, pretty close to black in color with very little signs of carbonation or head.

The aroma has a big dark chocolate presence to it. It's very rich with a chocolate brownie like quality to it. I get some lighter bourbon qualities to it with some very nice vanilla notes to it. Some sweeter dark fruits seemed to come out a little more as it warmed. Great aroma, I loved how rich chocolate and vanilla notes came together.

The taste is very smooth with with some nice notes of dark chocolate, vanilla and bourbon all coming out. I get a little more of a woody oak presence in the finish. The bourbon is a little more reserved at this point but it still adds some very good complimenting flavors to it.

The mouthfeel feels thin with very low carbonation. The low carbonation hurts it and makes it feel a little watery and thin. I'm sure this is attributed at least partially to it's age.

Overall I thought it had some really great flavors to it. The bold chocolate was complimented very well with the bourbon and vanilla. The thin mouthfeel and lower carbonation hurts it some, but overall I thought it was a very smooth and flavorful beer. (1,253 characters)

A dark chocolate and light coffee aroma develops around soft vanilla and some caramel. Booze isn't noticed at all. Some smokiness too.

A clamoring of flavors kind of melt into one. Vanilla and caramel seem to make dark, smooth chocolate. The coffee and some hops give it a bit of earthiness. Smoked meat and some woodiness. These are all bold flavors without aggressiveness. Very easy drinking for the size and abv. Would be (is) a great winter beer. (689 characters)

2010 bottle poured into a snifter. Thanks to MarcatGSB for this bottle!

Appearance - Not jet black. Dark, but it looks like a light stout. Huge head with lots of carbonation. Good lacing and retention. Lots of sediment, too. Chunks of nastiness floating about.

Smell - Sweet bourbon and some coffee. Really, not a lot of the stout character comes through. It's a lot of coffee and bourbon.

Taste - Bourbon up front. Again, not a lot of stout character until the finish. Some coffee and roasted malts in the background. Hefty grassy bitterness in the finish that reminds you it's an RIS.

Mouthfeel - Not heavy. Very light in body in fact. Bitterness is nice and adds to the stout's feel. The carbonation is quite high and is not really appealing for the style.

Overall - Disappointing, considering the ratings. Tastes good, but not up to the standards of the best stouts. Either other reviewers are tasting other flavors I'm missing or they're tasting the bottle count. (973 characters)

Pours pitch black and completely opaque without a trace of lighter color when held to a light source. Two finger frothy mocha head with good retetion, slowly fading into a lasting ring. Sporadic spots of lacing.

Beautiful comlex aroma with an almost perfect blend of bourbon, oak, vanilla and luscious dark malt. Hints of cocoa, lacto and subtle dark fruit. The bourbon presence smells amazing without overpowering the other characteristics.

Viscou chewy body that is surprisingly hop forward that adds a very slight bitterness and depth to this already incredibly complex beer. There is a very prominent bourbon presence up front but it is slowly countered mid-palate by a viscous, silky, luscious chocolate malt presence. Hints if dark chooclate, licorice, roasted coffee bean and toffee. The barrel adds a good bit of earthy oak and a prominent vanilla flavor. There is some slight heat toward the end of the sip and warmth in the chest but overall the ABav is excellent masked makng this complex, flavorful beer very quaffable. (1,110 characters)

I was on my way home from the gym at 8:45 PM stinking of sweat and iron and about to eat a meal of boneless skinless chicken breast and brown rice when I felt an unmistakable sensation: the call of Advocacy. I quickly checked the web browser on my phone. Sure enough, there was a keg of Ivan the Terrible in distress at Stone. "Someone may already be there Advocating it" I mused, "though...it's best not to leave these things to chance." And so it was, I found myself heeding the call of Beer Advocacy and putting aside all prior obligations.

The beer appears very Stouty, with a dark color and a billowing light brown head. The thing takes forever to recede.

The nose on the tap version is every bit as magical as the bottle I advocated a few months back. The beer reeks of bourbon and dark chocolate. It's like a dark chocolate bourbon brown sugar cookie. A light roasted malt presence is perceivable. Notes of vanilla linger in the background with caramel and a little oak. The flavor is boozy bourbon chocolate with a restrained roast and a light caramel presence. Every bit as awesome as it was from the bottle. The carbonation is at a moderate level and the mouthfeel is thick, sticky, and silky with alcohol warming. This beer is great. (1,257 characters)

Poured a jet black with with good carbonation and a nice fluffy brown head. Nose is bourbon, vanilla, chocolate, wood, bourbon and booze, light smell of oats as well. Taste is roasted malt, oats, vanilla, oak, bourbon, well balanced for such a complex, big beer. Taste is best of the best and defines a Barrel aged RIS. I have had some good ones and Ivan the Terrible slain them all in every way. Mouthfeel is booze, vanilla, bourbon, cocoa, tobacco. Drinkability. Hell yeah. Nothing better IMHO. Musty try and worth the price. (527 characters)

The beer pours a blackish brown with very good head retention and lacing. The nose is pretty incredible, showcasing dark chocolate, licorise, vanilla, light coffee and malt balls. The flavor profile replicates the nose pretty closely, but with some licorise and a touch of hoppy bitterness on the finish. Mouthfeel is long, soft and creamy, with almost a cask condtioning softness. Drinkability is pretty good, though you can tell the abv. is up there a bit. Regardless, this is very well made RIS from Big Sky brewing. Impressive. (567 characters)

A foil-wrapped 750 mL capped bottle. Number 332 of 1,152 from the 2008 release.

A: The stout is a dark one (seems like a broken record for JD Blackbeerd, Blackbeerd and now this) that generates a rather thick, craggy tan head that laces extensively. The lace is rather surprising for a beer of this strength.

S: The nose starts off (cold) with an average combination of bourbon and stout. As it warms though, it really takes off. Vanilla and caramel appear, accentuating the sweetness. A lactic streak runs through the middle of, adding a creamy aroma. Stout elements are bold, strong with dark chocolate and roasted malts.

T: The stout is a wonder. The bourbon barrel has imparted a solid vanilla flavor, strong but not boozy or fusel. Behind it, the body of the stout offers up caramel, cocoa powder, chocolate, coffee and burnt toast. Oak has really taken the edge off of the stout, allowing the bourbon to leave a mark without knocking me out. As in the nose, a lactic flavor, milky and smooth, runs through the body, cutting into both the barrel and the stout. This beer is the winner of the evening, with a long finish that is silky smooth.

M: The mouthfeel combines the best of a barrel and a stout without the overloaded malts or boozy heat. A well done stout.

D: I knew that I should have purchased two bottles. Deuane's reaction to seeing the bottle made it worth the while though. A great barrel aged stout. (1,423 characters)

A: Not the best looking beer I've ever poured. Hearty brownish, and on a standard pour, I get a meager head that's not even .25 fingers. No lacing and the tiniest damn collar you've ever seen.

S: Chocolate chip cookies, raw cocoa and a touch of charred wood.

T: Solid. Packed from jowel to jowel with warm dark chocolate, mature bourbon, vanilla and a touch of grassiness.

M: Jesus is this thin. It's lacking carbonation in the worst way. In fact it's so thin that it negatively affects the flavor profile, therefore kncoking it down a peg. This is hands down the low point of a fine beer.

O: I don't know what happened with the feel of this beer, but it really took away from the entirety of the experience. If you can look past it's flaws, Ivan's an above average BA RIS. Here's to hoping that the later vintages have better quality control and balance. (999 characters)

750 picked up locally for a very reasonable $10.... poured into my New Belgium snifter.. bottle 108 of 1152.

beautiful 3 finger head that has been sticking around for about 5 minutes ... dark tan.. looks like a really thick espresso cap... great lacing and a huge cap..

The nose is thick and very complex... not boozy at all.. big milk chocolate with dark cherry essence and vanilla.. bourbon isn't as pronounced as expected... yet the smell is fantastic.

wow.. this is like a liquid brownie.. big roasty chocolate.. some sweetened coffee notes.. more vanilla.. and the bourbon is more of a component that is throughout and never becoming too large.. complex with a great semi-dry finish that lingers forever.. dried fruit esters lend another layer of complexity.

I had high hopes for this one, but sorta was expecting to be let down... but I am very happy to report, I was wrong.. not as viscous most of it's more famous brothers .. the carbonation may be a touch on the high side.. but it is small bubble carbonation that helps lend a very lush mouthfeel.. This is a great beer... I wish we would have gotten more of it... I have a very good feeling that this is going to age like a real champion.

Huge thanks to Matt and the people at Big Sky who listened to me bitch about not getting this in... and a huge props to jjanega08 for appeasing an over aggressive trader :-) gracias Jozef. (1,393 characters)

Poured into a Lucifer snifter. Pours a dark, dark black with a chocolate colored head and nice lacing. Delicious bourbon and toasted malt aroma with a hint of chocolate. Intense oak and bourbon and dark and toasted malts. Vanilla, coffee and more oak middle and finish. Kinda boozy, which which lowers the score and should improve with aging. Medium bodied with some creaminess. On second taste, the alcohol is so firey and overwhelming, I down graded this one by a point. I hope it mellows with age. The positive elements are excellent, but it's covered with a pure alcohol burn. 2012 update: I was lucky enough to stumble on a fresh bottle of the current Ivan. The aroma and taste is similar, but the booziness noted in the earlier review is well covered by the flavor in this version. A nicely balanced and well made RIS, that I will revisit whenever it's made; score for taste adjusted upward. (897 characters)

A: poured a dark as night black in color with a thin dark brown bubbly head that left some good creamy frothy lacing sticking to the glass.

S: definitely had some a lovely chocolatey aroma with a bit of roast, tobacco blunt wrap notes, signs of bourbon barrel booze with hints of dark fruits, molasses, toffee, and brown sugar sweetness.

T: It had a nice dark chocolatey base with good roastiness, good bourbon barrel character but well balanced booze heat, a touch of dark fruitiness, tobacco blunt wrap accents alongside toffee, molasses and vanilla sweetness.

M: the brew was full in body with a moderate amount of carbonation which had a roasty, mild dark fruity, slightly boozy, bourbon wood barrel, sweet, rich and creamy finish.

O: definitely good as I thought it was going to be, a bit surprised on the tobacco character in it but it was still very good. Finally conquered this elusive beer. (903 characters)

Pitch black beer with a dense, tightly packed brown head. Hefty amounts of lace are dropped down as I drink. This smells really good. Chocolate, java, roast, coffee bean, bourbon, oak, vanilla bean.... Easy 5.0 here. Body is medium to medium-full. Beer is quite smooth and luxurious. Definite alcohol presence and the spiciness associated with it. Flavor is a lot of roast and chocolate and bourbon. Great combo. The alcohol smooths out a little as it warms, but is evident throughout the whole drink. Awesome beer overall. (523 characters)

This pours a near pitch black with just the lightest reddish hues shining through. The head of tannish foam is about 1 finger in size and there's some nice lacing here.

The smell has big notes of the bourbon with lots of dark chocolate and some dark fruit. The alcohol is there as well.

The taste...there's the chocolate, more of a cocoa taste actually, lots of sweet malty tones, a nice dose of dark fruitness most noticeable when I swish the beer in my mouth, a light but right amount of hop bitterness and, a light presence of bourbon; much less so than I figured there would be judging from the smell but it works nicely. Oh, except it *does* dominate in the finish. Perfect place for it, me thinks. Ok, the barrel aging becomes more of a factor as the brew warms up but it still isn't overpowering. The alcohol is there with some warming after the swallow but otherwise, I think it's hidden pretty well.

The mouthfeel is full, the carbonation is on the low side of medium, and it finishes, like I said, with a nice burst of bourbon and dark fruity goodness.

Drinkability? I put this one on the "dangerously drinkable" department. I can't believe how easy this one goes down and all I'm doing is taking small sips but they're very frequent sips. Delicious! Awesome job here Big Sky Brewing! (1,405 characters)

2010 bottle, drank at the 2012 poker game between xmas and nye. Shockingly pours out black! Ok, this looks like your standard well built imperial stout aged in a bourbon barrel, it is deep, rich, thick and black, but leaves little in the way of head, lacing or retention. Aroma was dark bittersweet chocolate up front, some mildly boozy bourbon notes lying in wait underneath it.

Taste, here's where it really excels, reminds me of a stronger Central Waters bourbon barrel beer. You get the light bourbon toasted notes, coconut coming through stronger than your average bourbon barrel beer. Plenty of vanilla in their too, tastes like it could be Jim Beam, but far from certain.

Its mouthfeel is full bodied, its never hot, and relatively silky smooth. Slightest aged or old school british hops provide some nice balance to this. The oak is there, just in the right proportion to the other flavor components. Carbonation is low, but perfectly matched to allow everything to delicately envelope your palate. Maybe a dash of brown sugar to help keep any booziness from becoming a detraction.

This is a top notch bourbon barrel beer. Big Sky, with their ipa, trout slayer, slow elk, cowboy coffee and Ivan are all underappreciated beers. Now their kriek, ugh, that's an abomination, but you gotta like those odds! (1,315 characters)

Very rich aroma. Lots of nuts and alcohol. Caramel and toffee. Vanilla. Oak. Bourbon. A little earthy in the background. Sweet chocolate. Very nice.

Medium-sweet malt with some very light fruitiness. Lots of toffee. Bourbon oak and chocolate. Excellent.

Medium-full body with moderate carbonation. Nice and very creamy.

An excellent stout. Wonderfully creamy and complex. Nice chocolate and malt flavours. Well integrated oak. It has been a while since I've had a nice Bourbon Barrelled Stout and I'm loving it. (653 characters)